Professional Tax in Mizoram

Professional tax is a form of tax that is collected from the income-earning residents of selected states in India. In the State of Mizoram, the provisions pertaining to this tax are governed by the Mizoram Professions, Trades, Callings, And Employments Act of 1955. The Act facilitates the levy of professions, trades, callings and employment in the State to provide the government with adequate revenue so as to enact essential welfare measures. This article looks at the various provisions pertaining to professional tax in Mizoram in detail. The taxpayer can obtain Mizoram Professional Tax registration through IndiaFilings.

Law Governing

As mentioned above, Professional Tax in the State of Mizoram is administered by the “Mizoram Professions, Trades, Callings And Employments Taxation Act, 1995 .” The Act stipulates that individuals whose monthly income is above Rs. 15,000 are obligated to remit this Tax.

Liability

The tax liabilities of salaried employees are to be met by their respective employers, in which case the employers may deduct the amount of liability from the salary of the employees. On the other hand, a professional who earns income without an employer is required to self-remit their tax dues. Taxes remitted by these taxpayers must be supported by a tax return, which must include the particulars of payment. On the same page, employers tasked with such an obligation must duly obtain the Certificate of Registration and Certificate of Employment. An employer with more than 20 employees with his/her disposal needs to remit the payments within 15 days from the closure of the month. If the total employee strength is below 20, the taxes can be remitted on a quarterly basis; which is to state precisely by the 15^th of the next month from the end of the quarter.

Provisions of Return Filing

Taxpayers remitting their dues are also required to file an annual return for the same. This obligation can be completed by the 30th of June every year. If it hasn’t been done so, the concerned authority may serve a notice prompting the taxpayer to furnish the return within the period specified in the notice.

Authorized Personnel

The responsibility of tax levy is vested with the following persons:

Commissioner of Taxes
Deputy Commissioner of Taxes
Appellate Assistant Commissioner of Taxes
Assistant Commissioner of Taxes
Superintendent of Taxes
Inspector of Taxes.

The State regulations convey that the Commissioner of Taxes must render his obligations over the entire State of Mizoram, while the likes of others may discharge their duties for a particular jurisdiction as notified by the Commissioner of Taxes in the Official Gazette.

Manner of Determination of Tax

The tax payable by any person under Mizoram Professions, Trades, Callings And Employments Taxation Act, 1995 shall generally be determined with reference to his total gross income during the previous year from his profession, trade, calling, or employment, or with reference to his standing in the profession, trade, calling or employment Members of the Armed forces of India and co-operative societies registered or deemed to have been registered under the Mizoram Co-operative Societies Act, 1991 are exempted from this provision.

Professional Tax Slab Rates

The rate of tax varies between the different states. However, the liability of tax imposed on individual taxpayers wouldn’t exceed Rs. 2,500 in a given financial year. The following rates of tax will be levied on the residents of the State of Mizoram:

S. no	Basis of Income	Rate of Tax
1	Within Rs. 10,000	Nil
2	More than Rs. 10,000 but is confined to Rs. 15,000	Rs. 100
3	More than Rs. 15,000 but is confined to Rs. 20,000	Rs. 150
4	More than Rs. 20,000 but is confined to Rs. 25,000	Rs. 200
5	More than Rs. 25,000 but is confined to Rs. 35,000	Rs. 250
6	More than Rs. 35,000 but is confined to Rs. 50,000	Rs. 300
7	More than Rs. 50,000 but is confined to Rs. 75,000	Rs. 500
8	More than Rs. 75,000 but is confined to Rs. 1,00,000	Rs. 750
9	More than Rs. 1,00,000 but is confined to Rs. 1,50,000	Rs. 1,000
10	More than Rs. 1,50,000 but is confined to Rs. 2,00,000	Rs. 1,500
11	More than Rs. 2,00,000 but is confined to Rs. 2.50,000	Rs. 2,000
12	More than Rs. 2,50,000	Rs. 2,500

Exemptions

Apart from members of the Armed forces or a cooperative society registered under the Act, the following persons are exempted from its provisions:

Parents of children who are suffering from a permanent or mental disability.
Individuals who are physically incapacitated.
Women engaged as an agent under the Mahila Pradhan Kshetriya Bachat Yojana or Director of Small Savings.
Parents or guardians of individuals suffering from a mental disability.
Badli workers are employed in the textile industry.
Individuals who are aged above 65.

Escaped Tax

Given a scenario where a taxpayer hasn’t been assessed or has been under-assessed for any financial year, the assessing authority may be discreet to issue a notice and pursue assessments or re-assessments on the escaped tax, upon which the taxpayer will be charged with the liability so escaped.

The Right to Appeal

Taxpayers who find themselves aggrieved by the verdict of an assessing authority may choose to file an appeal to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner of Taxes against such order within 60 days of issuing the same. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner may then schedule a date and place for hearing the appeal, which can be adjourned. As a result of the disposition, the Appellate Assistant Commissioner may direct the following:

Confirm, reduce, enhance or annul the assessed tax.
Set aside the assessment and order for a fresher one.
Confirm, reduce or annul the penal order.

Powers of the Commissioner

The Commissioner is entitled to call for and scrutinize the records of any proceedings initiated under the Act by any subordinate Officer and revise the orders passed under the proceedings, subject to the condition that the concerned taxpayer isn’t slapped with a prejudicial order without providing him/her with an opportunity of being heard. The Commissioner is also vested with the powers to file a petition within 60 days of the order passed under Section 15 after providing with the petitioner a reasonable opportunity of being heard. On another empowering note, the Commissioner may delegate the powers under section 15 to any other officer, who is not below the rank of Deputy Commissioner of Taxes.

Penal Provisions

The Mizoram State regulations provide that any taxpayer who indulges in any of the following offenses will be punishable with imprisonment of a period which is not more than six months or a fine of up to Rs. 500, or both:

Failure to submit the tax return in due time or filing of a false return on unreasonable grounds.
Failure or negligence to comply with the requirements of any obligation bestowed on him/her.
Fraudulently evades remittance of any dues under this provision, or conceals the liability for the same.

Documents for Registration

Memorandum of Association
Articles of Association
PAN Card
Lease Agreement

Procedure to Pay Mizoram Professional Tax

By accessing the official Website of the Taxation Department, Government of Mizoram, the taxpayer can pay the Mizoram Professional Tax. The official notification of Mizoram Professions, Trades, Callings And Employments Taxation Act, 1995 is attached here for reference: [pdf-embedder url="https://www.indiafilings.com/learn/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/TheMizoramProfessionsTradesCallingsandEmploymentsTaxationAct1995-1.pdf" title="The Mizoram Professions, Trades, Callings, and Employments Taxation Act 1995"]